Sand in the wind
by thegoldfishkiller
Summary: Two people. Both with lost memories. One by grief, the other by a man in a black cloak. Perhaps it is best for them to have never meet. Perhaps it is impossible for their lives to not be intertwined. And unbeknownst to them until they meet again, their lives and memories have much more to do with each other than they had thought. Gaara/OC.
1. Prologue

Prologue

I know Sabaku no Gaara.

Then again, who doesn't?

Even though I hate him, in a way, I've always feel a lasting streak of pity for him. I don't understand it. Though he killed more than the amount of times I felt the urge to punch Gorou, I have an almost sad feeling when I think about him, which is crazy, since I barely even know him. Even though I was almost killed by him before.

It started at the play ground when I was five. I was chasing around with a few friends that I don't remember making. We were having a good time. Then he came.

The poor, red haired boy didn't even seem to realize what he was doing. But no one else seemed to care what he felt. They only care of what he was the shell of.

He had a demon inside him.

My school mates were more than glad to inform me on the matter of who he was.

He was the Kazekage's son. Monster boy, demon child, they called him.

Gaara. His name. The demon loving only himself.

So at a young and tender age - I think I was five. Six? - I learned the horror of Sabuku no Gaara.

You can't say that I met him formerly before, face to face. Or that he even knows my actual existence. But I am perfectly okay with that. I fear him, but mostly not in the way other people do. I fear _for_ him. My ickle, liddle, five year old self is quite weird. But as it is, the twelve year old me is quite weird too.

I do not run from him, nor do I run to him. I don't see him often anyways, but that is how I want it to be. I am terrified of him, and terrified for him. I stay away from him, but also pity him

That is my one, simple concept involved with Sabaku no Gaara, and I never make a mistake in it.

Still, I wish for a way to help him. And maybe even save him from himself.

...

... I think I really am going crazy now. Never knew that would happen...

- Miku

- Note from Author -

Yay. First story on fanfiction. Probably gonna delete it after too many complications rise out of it, then I'll have eat another huge bowl of ice cream while watching soap opera and wallow in my misery. Then again, on the bright side, this storyline is better than any other I have done yet. It is pretty much complete except for a few more choices I have to decide on in the future.

My knowledge on Naruto has a few mishaps, so feel free to remind me of anything I might've gotten wrong. I rely on the manga and Narutopedia for the information.

- the gold fish killer


	2. Chapter 1

Sand in the wind

Disclaimer: If I owned any Naruto characters, the cow will jump over the moon. Which means, no, I do not own Naruto and his crew.

Chapter one

Miku wiped sweat off her brows as she glared pointedly at Gorou, who was smirking to himself from under the cool shade of a tree while lying on the ground like there was not a care in the world. Perhaps nothing important to him, but there are people in this world dying, aging, decomposing, and he is acting like none of that is happening!

… Okay, maybe she_ was_ exaggerating the situation on purpose, but why couldn't Gorou just lend his teammates' a hand? Was it asking too much for Gorou to move his butt over here and start working? Apparently, it was.

"Why isn't he doing anything?" Miku pointed accusingly at the boy like he stole her favorite kunai, although she already knew the answer. He was lazy. End of story. Perhaps she asked because she wanted to vent out her frustration right now. And that was saying a lot. Miku doesn't get angry easily, since she had a weird emotional detachment. Right now was one of the angriest times she got, and possibly could ever get. Being on a team with Emi, Gorou, and Kokoro-sensei had helped her with her emotions, but it didn't get very far from just a few sarcastic words coming from Miku's mouth.

"He's hurt, remember?" Emi said while daintily patting her handkerchief to her forehead. Her curly blonde hair was unbelievably still neat and pretty, while Miku's semi-short, dark chestnut colored hair surely looked like a bird make a nest out of it. Probably because she kept tugging at it in irritation. And irritated she was. She never had much interest in her appearance before, so she could care less even if her hair looked like an animal died on it.

"Yeah right," Miku muttered darkly while flicking her long, dark brown bangs away from her eyes, huffing in annoyance when it flopped back over her vision. _Oh, crap_, Emi thought nervously, thinking the c-word that she rarely ever says out loud_, Miku is only sarcastic when she is **furious**._ _In her own special sort of way, at least._

"He only pretended to twist his ankle when we were catching that dog for the Fat Lady..." Miku continued her half-rant, a hint of anger outlining her usually blunt and monotone voice.

"Hm?" Emi looked up from her work politely, pretending to not hear Miku so to stay out of the dark haired girl's target range. Everything about Emi was polite, just like everything about Gorou was indolent. And, as Gorou puts it, everything about Miku is boring. Her looks, her cloths, her past … and up to that point, Gorou has been shut up by Miku for good with the help of a few spare kunais she had. Miku is no sadist, but she hates it when someone claims her to be someone she is not. And she especially hates it when someone mentions her unknown past.

"Nothing," the Miku sighed, aware of Emi's strategy, but chose not to comment. After all, she did have a few shurikens with her right now, and her anger level is up to a tenth of a normal person's, which is very high for her indeed. She was never good at controlling her almost non-existant emotions, since they come and go too fast.

They were in a D rank mission: convert fifty potato sacks to the warehouse. Sounds easy to Miku at first, but now here she was, with a crick in her back, warm and sticky with the heat of the desert sun. And the worst part was that she can't even use the speed that she had practiced for all her life to just get it over with in two seconds flat. All because Emi insisted that everything needed time and care to get right. And her delightful Kokoro sensei has – hm, how should Miku put it? – _ditched_ her students when they needed her the most. And Goruo was, obviously, not helping at all. Was there anything _not_ to be angry about?

_Ugh. I'm never eating a single potato again!_ She thought distastefully. This experience was destroying her taste for the root vegetable.

"Finished yet?" A drawling remark came from Gorou as he put his hands behind his head casually_. I really will get him back for this_, Miku muttered grimly in her mind.

On a mission, it was a rule that Kokoro-sensei drilled into the Genins' mind that you never, ever hurt your comrades on a mission, no matter what situation it is. If she didn't have that rule stuck in her head, Gorou will already have three broken ribs, one broken arm, and possibly have lose the ability to have kids. Maybe.

Emi counted all the potato sacks,"... 48, 49, 50! Finally, we're done." She huffed and wiped at her forehead again with the hankie.

Miku stood and stretched her back, producing a lot of cracking sounds as she bends her vertebral, while she glanced at her watch_. Sands, planting potatoes the "Emi way" took 70% of my day_, she thought with an imperceptible startle.

"Okay, guys. I'm gonna go write my report and take a shower. And no, Gorou, I will not and will _never _write that report for you. Do it yourself," she said over her shoulder to a passively annoyed Gorou and an amused Emi, and walked out of the warehouse station on to the streets.

"Hey, Miku! Do you want to go shopping afterwards?" Emi called after her. Miku glanced back at her teammate with a raised eyebrow. Emi knew her better than this, and Miku had a faint idea that Emi just wanted to torture her by asking her opinion on shoes.

"Depends on what we're buying," She replied, humoring her friend just a bit. Then she turned around and was gone in a millisecond.

Miku weaved quickly through the people on the streets. Her house wasn't that far away, only two blocks away. Pushing chakra to her feet, she sped to about a tenth of her speed. The wind blew against her face at an exhilarating speed as people and buildings whizzed past her at an alarming rate, which she had gotten used to, after a while.

Miku had trained her speed along with her stealth for years. Now, she was at a speed thought impossible for anyone, at an invisible rate. Regular shinobi cannot hear her, or see her. Currently, Miku was working to the level where even the Sharingen cannot detect her movements easily.

Turning at a corner, she stopped in front of a wall in an ally way. The whole trip took about five seconds, and she hadn't even exerted her full speed once.

Miku quickly looked around for any stray trespassers, and curled her hand around the thin air, turning her hand. It was an invisible door knob. A strong genjustu was cast on the entrance of her home by Emi, her fellow team mate who was a genjustu master, and can never be lifted unless she releases it deliberately. Quick as she can, Miku opened the door in about a foot and slipped into her home.

It was a really spacious place, and looks bigger on the inside than the outside. It is covered in genjustu so it looks like an abandoned building with no doors. The trapdoor leading to the roof is also covered by genjustu, making it seem like it's not there. Needless to say, Miku love her privacy.

Throwing herself down onto the white couch, she turned toward the small wooden table cluttered with paper and picked a brush into the ink bottle, preparing to write a report to her Kokoro-sensei, who has mysteriously disappeared when she, Emi and Goruo were storing potatoes. Although she didn't show it on her face, she was very pissed at her sensei, and planned to make her know it later on.

Suddenly, Miku stiffened, and put the brush down softly. She turned her head sharply to the side, looking at the door. Pushing her chakra signal lower, she crept silently to the entrance, stopping a good few feet away from it. Someone is out there, right in front of the door. She stayed staring at the door, her hand on her weapons pouch.

After a few moments, whoever it was went away. Almost like a ghost.

_Huh_, she thought, _strange..._

She shrugged nonchalantly. Perhaps just passerby going through the alley way. She turned back to the couch, ready to begin her work.

But even as she walked back to her assignment, something about the charkra signature irked her. It was unnervingly familiar, like a second conscious, but completely out of my memory's reach.

-.-.-.-

He stood on one of the building's roof, overlooking Sunagakure with his cold, light green eyes as his short red locks danced in the wind. The sand demon writhed inside him, hissing dark, menacing thoughts into his mind. The boy's cold presence did not fit well with the clear blue sky and the bright Suna sun in which he stood under, and he planned to slip back into darkness soon enough.

Suddenly, a girl with black hair appeared in front of the building opposite the one where he stood. The sand at his feet shifted at the sudden movement. The boy's sea foam green eyes narrowed. The girl seemed like she came out of the thin air. How can that be?

In the next moment, she disappeared in a blur.

He jumped down the building's roof in a swirl of sand, landing right at the place where she last stood. He didn't see anything out of place. Nothing explained to how she disappeared like that. She couldn't have used transportation justu, for he didn't see her form the hand seals. Besides, she looked about twelve, still Genin. Like him.

Narrowing his green eyes, Gaara vanished in another small tornado of sand.

-.-.-.-

Miku took a short shower and dressed in a soft, light green top with long baggy sleeves, and baggy white pants that ended just in between her knees and ankles. Attaching her customary silver belt back to her waist, she slowly fingered the item strapped to its side before tying her short hair into a small ponytail. Barely glancing at the mirror, she walked back to the door, snatching her report along the way from the kitchen counter.

Standing before the door to check chakra signatures, especially the one she felt just before, she slipped her pack on to her shoulder, and then was gone.

She powered out of her house, onto the streets, and to the main square in ten seconds. She stepped before a stone statue of the first Kazekage before peering behind it. There she was. Her elusive female sensei. Kokoro looked up sheepishly, knowing her student had found her.

"Hey Miku! What's up? How was the – ah, um … Potatoes! Yeah! How were the potatoes? I was just -"

"Save it," Miku shoved her report in her teacher's face. Normally, Miku's current behavior was accounted for as disrespectful, but the girl had a good reason to be mad. Kokoro had a streak of laziness, and abandoned her team in the middle of a mission simply because she didn't like chores, leaving her students to do it. Kokoro had the decency to look a bit meek.

"Wow Miku! Still the fastest one, eh?" She looked over her student's neat, three paged work. "This looks like it would take minutes, but for you, probably a few seconds, right?"

"Milliseconds," Miku replied dryly, sarcasm lingering in her voice.

Kokoro chuckled nervously, "You should smile a bit. People here right now are probably thinking you're a grumpy cat with that expression of yours."

"I only smile when necessary," Miku raised her brows, quoting one of the academy teachers from two years ago.

"Gosh, you sound so detached and harsh like that, even though you're not like at all in reality," Kokoro grumbled, although she knew that her student _was_ actually somewhat like that on the outside. Then she said in a louder voice, "How did you find me?"

Miku snorted, "You have been using the same hiding spot for the past five chore-boycotts you did. Besides, I could hear you."

Kokoro pursed her lips, "Ah, yes. Your sensitive cat like hearing."

"Yeah. I had created a justu that only people like I can do, which allows you to tune in to someone's voice, and I can hear you right away from a far distance. You really should stop socializing while hiding from me. I heard that argument between you and the shoe shop keeper. Just by the way, three inched heels are not really suited for a ninja, Kokoro-sensei," Miku said without a hint of bragging in her voice. That simply wasn't her style.

"Okay, how about this. I treat you to some shaved ice cones, and you forgive me," Kokoro bargained with her dignity in shreds.

Miku smiled as big as she probably ever could, warming to her teacher for the first time since finding her. "Deal. Along with some green grapes." She loved green of the berries, and the sweet and sour taste of it.

Kokoro smiled wryly. "Now you seem more like yourself!"

Kokoro is quite different from the rest of the jounins. She was free and playful, a rare variety in the Sand ninja community. But Miku liked it. It reminded her that not every skilled ninja here is on the default setting. And Kokoro was also the one who had helped her the most when she was first admitted into ninja training.

"Hey!" A voice called out. Miku and Kokro turned around. Emi appeared from the crowds on the streets, breathing heavily. "I've been looking for you guys everywhere!" She exclaimed. She looked around, "Where's Gorou?"

"Probably lazing in his apartment," Miku replied. He always did that, running away without a trace, only to have gone to his home to get his twelfth nap that day. Kokoro clapped her hands together suddenly and Miku and Emi jumped at the sharp unexpected sound.

"Well, then, let's do some extra one on one training! And also, I have an important announcement to make, too." Kokoro exclaimed cheerfully.

"But I just took a shower," Miku frowned. Coming from anyone else's mouth, it would have sounded like whining. But when Miku says it, it sounds like an undeniably reasonable argument. _She certainly is an odd girl,_ Kokoro mused as she replied.

"A ninja never is unsoiled!" Kokoro grinned widely at Miku, but her words also had another meaning. It meant that no matter how hard they try, no shinobi will ever be pure. It was common knowledge to every Sunan ninja. Miku sighed and said no more.

Note -

I really like Gaara, but, no offence to those who love Hinata and Gaara or Sakura and Gaara, those pairings just doesn't seem right with me, so I make stories about him and a character of my own. Maybe it's because I believe in Hinata with Naruto, and Sakura with Sasuke...

So! This was just introducing you to a few characters I made myself. Are they okay? Please don't insult the story when it just started. Just criticize on parts where I make a mistake on. This is my first story ever so please keep that in mind. Unless you don't care. Then, whatever.

*Ehem* Review, please? It would help my personality and mood, not to mention that it would also help my sanity, and even… ah, sorry, I am babbling again.

- Your's truly, the goldfish killer

P.S- It is a good idea to reread my chapters from before from time to time, since I always revise them


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter two

Miku jumped from the tip of each wooden pole to wooden pole on the balls of her feet. Darting ten feet above the ground past a set of targets, she slipped five shurikens from her weapon pouch and flung them all at the same time. Five thumps were heard. Four landed bull's-eye, though one was a millimeter short from the small, centered red circle.

_Drat_, she thought and stopped moving. Her thick grayish boots prevented the sharpness of the narrow poles to hurt her feet.

"Awesome work, Miku! Just a bit off on the aim, probably because of your crappy arm strength. Excellent speed as usual and exceptionally good balance!" Kokoro-sensei called from on the ground. The girl nodded and hopped off of the pole. Her speed was great, so was her balance, and she was handy with weapons. Her strength was terrible, though, and her genjustu was just passable. Her ninjustu was also good.

"That was great Miku!" Emi beamed. Gorou was lying in the shade of the building, having arrived just in time for the extra training. Miku smiled as much of a grin she can as she thought how Kokoro exploded when she saw that his report was about quarter of a page with only five sentences. They already finished their bit of one on one training earlier. Emi was a genjustu master, while Gorou was all arm strength. The rest of Gorou is referred to as "lazy ass" in the shinobi world.

"Alright, troop! I to an important announcement to make!" Kokoro-sensei sat down on the sandy pavement. Miku sat to her left while Gorou sat to her right. Emi sat opposite of her.

Our teacher leaned in with a crazy grin on her face. She really was the most playful person Miku has ever met. "Here's the news, guys! I entered you to..." she paused dramatically, looking at each of us excitedly, "... The Chuunin exams!"

…

A long silence reigned as Kokoro's students looked at her blankly, expressions ranging from extremely impressive to not so much. Emi and Gorou's jaws nearly hit the pavement and their eyes popped, while Miku's moth opened to a perfect O. A lone breeze blew through the group, scattering bits of sand around. Kokoro started getting impatient. She scowled at her students, "Well? Anything to say?"

Miku coughed dryly and her sensei turned her attention to her. Miku voiced a small part of her doubts, "Well, actually, I'm not sure if we are ready. Don't people usually wait a year or two as Genin, and then enter to be a Chuunin? We just started as Genins this year."

"Of course you are ready! If you aren't, why would I enter you?" Kokoro scowled, and Miku realized how tense she was.

_She's lying_, a small voice from Miku's instincts told her. Her mind whirled into a thinking overdrive as it usually does, thinking of the possibilities.

"Well," Goruo interrupted. "I wouldn't care of becoming a Chuunin." It was his special way of saying _"Great! Where's the signup sheet?"_

"I would love to." Emi smiled politely. On the inside, she was much more enthusiastic. _This is my chance...!_ Emi thought.

Kokoro turned to Miku, smiling such a big, fake smile at her; Miku wondered how her face didn't crack and split. She shrugged a yes. Becoming Chuunin might be cool, but it wasn't a necessity of life to her.

"Great! We'll be leaving to Konoha next week!" Kokoro grinned and punched the air with one of her fists. Miku forced out a smile while the others grinned happily, Emi with her finger tips pressed together in polite glee while Goruo just twitched the side of his mouth slightly – he was probably too lazy now to even smirk. Miku noted how Kokoro's smile seemed as strained as her own.

When Miku got home, she turned over the freshly thought ideas in her mind, and admitted to herself on another part of her worries.

Kokoro was not being truthful. Miku can somehow tell truth from lie, which has been quite useful for her so far. If Kokoro was hiding something from her own team about the Chuunin exams, then it was either an innocent surprise or a more serious reason. Miku was leaning towards the latter by her sensei's behavior. If it was some sort of exciting surprise, then Kokoro wouldn't have been that tense. Sure, perhaps a bit more hyped up than usual, but not that stiffness she showed today. It was an Oh-crap-I-have-a-really-bad-secret kind, not the usual I-am-trying-not-to-blow-up-from-holding-in-the-exc itement.

Another doubt was that a specific person will also be there at The Chuunin Exams. Someone she had met long ago, but she's not sure if he even remembers her. She is not sure if she can really say that he is someone she knows, either. But he will definitely be there. And if he is there, who knows what will happen?

Miku also wasn't sure if she was ready. Her hearing ability, half-formed night vision, and speed were her only good points, and her speed took ages to work up to the level she was at now, and even that might not be good enough.

Miku still remembered her days as an Academy student, when she was nine. At Suna, when you enroll, your team has already been decided. If you don't graduate, they replace you.

**"At least finish one!" The teacher barked at the girl at the ground, not even bothering to use her name even though the girl has been one of his students for the past year. His disappointment in her abilities was quite obvious. She was sticky with sweat, and her arms ached but she got up again, and tried to do a push up once more. She barely even bended her arms when she collapsed to the hard ground, absolutely exhausted. **

**She can't do it. It is almost impossible for her to win an arm wrestle with a five-year old. Her scrawny arms can barely lift five pounds, let alone her own weight. Worse, this was graduation time. The test to see if you were ready as a shinobi. And Miku was flunking it worse than a newbie could. Ninjutu and close range was okay, if not sketchy, but genjustu, far ranged weaponry, and strength? Terrible. Absolutely horrid.**

**"Get up!" The instructor snapped at the girl as the rest of the students giggled behind their hands, laughing at her. The jounins whispered quietly to each other, obviously pointing out how much of a flop she was. A physically challenged orphan. A dud. A failure. **

**She didn't cry though. A barrier blocked her from emotion, just like her memories were locked up away from her conscious mind, having her know that they were there, but not what they were. Her emotional impartiality scared some, and disgusted others. She couldn't help it. She was just like that. Stoic. Blank. **

**What a fail as a human.**

**The instructor nudged sharply at the side of girl, who was still lying face first on the ground, not moving. Another burst of laughter came from the students. Miku refused to look up, already knowing what she would see; a couple of kids snorting at her and a group of Jounin glaring at her disapprovingly. Is that all she would see her entire life? **

**"Stop."**

**Miku finally looked up in vague surprise at the speaker. It was a woman with straight brown hair, bright grey eyes and an almost light presence, though she wore a tight expression. The instructor moved away from Miku as he scowled at the speaker. **

**"Kokoro-sama, you can't possibly want this girl as your student! She will never become a passing shinobi, much less an exceptional ninja!" He spit out angrily.**

**The woman, Kokoro, shot a sharp look at the chuunin instructor, who shut up quick. Not sparing him another glance, Kokoro went to Miku and gently pulled her up by her arms, brushing off the sand on her cloths. Smiling brightly at the girl, Kokoro asked, "What is your name?"**

**Miku looked up at her with impassive eyes, her expression still blank. She hasn't spoken to anyone since waking up in her empty house but the many stars and the few birds in Suna. But she supposed she can make an exception to the woman before her. **

**"It's Miku."**

**Kokoro had already known her strength failure, so she worked on the girls's overall stamina and speed to make up for the physical weakness. After another year, Miku was finally admitted as a Genin shinobi, although she had been with Kokoro for some time. It took some persuading and tests before Miku finally got her Suna head band.**

**All with the help of Kokoro-sama. **

**-.-.-.-**

She watched the sun descent the sky while standing on her roof. As the sky turned dark, and finally, toward midnight, Miku slipped her flute from her silver belt. It was the only thing that reminds her of her dead family. She has played this flute for a long time, since she was very young. She can't remember exactly when, only that it was necessary to do so.

She can't remember how her family died. Actually, she can't seem to remember anything about her childhood. Just her flute and that meeting with that crimson-haired boy. Every time she tried to remember, it was like there was a fog covering up her memories. She always ended up with empty hands after every search, not a single memory uncovered. The first conscious memory she could ever think about was of her, waking up in an empty house. The rest of her life played on from there. Sometimes she wondered if she was born as a nine-year old. No family. Nothing except for a flute, her first name, and a lone memory from a life from before.

As she played, she wondered about that boy. It has been a long time since she'd even thought about him. When Miku first met him, her family was still alive. At least, she assumes they were. Their meeting wasn't exactly the happiest one.

Her friends had been more than glad to share some information to Miku, after the attack of the sand boy. He was the Kazekage's son. Monster boy, demon child, they called him.

Gaara. His name. The demon loving only himself.

And that was all Miku can remember from her childhood. Her next memory was from probably some years later, the thoughts before and after the meeting with Gaara was completely missing.

She wondered why…

-.-.-.-

He watched as the sun slipped away from the sky and the air turn cold. He waited for the heavens to turn dark blue and for the millions of little bits of lights called stars light up in the night.

He waited as Shukaku coiled tightly inside of him, restless.

Finally, the thing he was waiting for began. A clear, beautiful note of a flute resounded in the night. The sad melody bloomed, and a strong sense of nostalgia swept over him as it did every night. He had no idea why the sound of that tune sounded so familiar, and when he tried to remember, his head felt like it as going to split open. So he stopped trying.

He sat on the flat top of the roof, a customary style of Suna's homes. He stayed there every night to listen to this song ever since he was eight. When he was having a particularly painful headache, and had blindly climbed to the roof at night, he heard a melody, full of hope and sadness.

And so he stayed in this world, a song as the last string to hold him on earth.

The tune was slow, and calm. It soothed him. His heart relaxed just a bit as his tense muscles did too. Even Shukaku settled down, until it was almost like it was content.

So, every night, for four years, he stayed at the roof to listen, and to look at the stars. He can't sleep, he never can with Shakaku inside him, but he spent his nights listening. When the melody did not play, he went on a midnight killing spree, taking out the unlucky people who were unfortunate enough to be out that particular night. But that didn't happen often, as the flute sounded almost every evening.

Every night, he vaguely wondered who might the person who is blowing into the flute, but is too afraid to go look, because if he did, the beautiful melody might stop. It will be all too easy for him to kill the song.

But ... some small part of him didn't want that.

Note -

I really like telling the meaning and gender of names, because then the characters seems more familiar to me.

Here are the following names of this story so far:

Emi - blessing, favor, beautiful picture. Feminine

Gorou – fifth son. Musculine

Miku - beautiful sky, long time, future. Feminine

Shōjikina - honest one

Kokro - spirit, heart. Feminine

Every time a new character that I made is introduced, then I will write their name, meaning, and gender. That is a promise! *Flash a sparkling grin that rivals Lee and Gai's*

- the gold fish killer


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter three

Miku cast one more glance at her home before turning away and ran with her team toward Konoha. Or, really, Emi, Gorou, and even Kokoro sprinted as fast as they could, and Miku sort fast-jogged. All the while, Miku shielded her face from the sand in the wind. She has always hated the grainy particles that scratches at her sensitive eyes, leaving her teary and annoyed, attempting to rub stingy itches from her sight orbs. She knew she should have brought the sand visor to cover her face, but never seems to be able to bring herself to ask for one. Another mystery about her that she didn't understand.

Emi and Kokoro, the chatterboxes, attempted light conversation. Which was something they should not have even attempted with two teammates like theirs. Gorou was too stuck up, and Miku wasn't in the mood, as shown when Emi nervously asked her if she was looking forward to the Wind ceremony, and Miku simply looked at her blankly with a short "huh". She had been deep in thought, and didn't hear what Emi said. Nevertheless, Emi gave up of small talk with her teammate, and was reduced to commenting on the weather with Kokoro awkwardly. Which, by the way, was sunny. As usual.

They camped at night in the desert after hours of running. Emi was slightly out of breath, and put her hands on her knees to catch her breath, while Miku was just a bit sweaty, but feeling very faint. Her stamina is not that good. Gorou, surprisingly, was still standing after the run, as he was the lazy ass of the group, though he looked like he might collapse any minute. Kokoro, as a respectable jounin, was in still totally refreshed, standing much straighter than her students.

When the sky became filled with stars, Miku's hand itched to pull out the flute hidden in her belt. She lightly touched the wooden instrument for a few slow seconds, but then pulled her hand away from it. The flute was a secret of hers to keep. That is why she only plays it at night. It is also a secret weapon that she has somehow carried on from her life before. Another part of her that proves her childhood.

"Ah, it's so beautiful!" Emi sighed and stretched her arms up while lying down in the sand, her small beige backpack used as a pillow. Kokoro and Gorou lay down too while Miku stayed sitting up with her legs drawn up in her chest, and her arms wrapped around them. She debated inwardly about something, wondering if to speak out the last part of her suspicions.

"Hey, Miku, why are you thinking so hard lately?" Emi looked at Miku over in concern. She then held her hands up, "I promise I didn't peek at what you were thinking!". Miku, too tired to comment on Emi's ability, paused for a moment.

Taking a deep breath, she spoke, "Kokoro-sensei, I know that you are hiding something from us. So please just tell us truthfully. Why are we really going to the Chuunin Exams?"

A confused silence followed. Emi stayed still with a grim expression while Gorou stayed lying down casually, but with a very comical expression, as if he didn't know if to accuse of trickery or simply stick if nose up in the air with an indifferent huff. Kokoro stayed silent. Miku had some sort of night vision because of her mindless wanderings in the night all over Suna, and she can see her sensei with her back to her students, still as a statue.

"Emi, you knew something about this too, ne? You probably picked up one her thoughts. Kokoro-sensei would have to think strongly in order to lie something like this," Miku continued, watching her sensei's back.

Finally, Kokoro sighed, turning around and sat up, smiling wryly at Miku. Miku did not return the grin. "As observant as always, ne, Miku?" Miku didn't return the smile. Kokoro fully turned toward her students, "Alright, the reason Suna is entering the Chuunin exams is because," Kokro glanced around her for any potential eavesdroppers, and then whispered, "We are planning on an attack to Konohagakure."

Emi pursed her lips, Gorou stiffened some more, while Miku frowned. "I thought we were allies with Konohagakure," she said almost absentmindedly.

"Well, yes, we are, but the Kazekage seems to have found a way, or a someone, that can destroy Konoha, and is planning to use the advantage of the Chunnin Exams to attack, "Kokoro said grimly, "Truthfully, I do not like the idea of back stabbing someone in the who trusts us, but I am not the Kazekage. And remember," She looked darkly at each of her students, "You are not, too, so don't make mistakes that's out of line."

"What are we supposed to do, then?" Emi asked. "I mean, we're only some half-baked Genins in a start of a war."

"Just act like you're there for the exams. Act natural. When the time comes - "Kokoro cut off from her sentence and froze. Emi opened her mouth to ask what is wrong, and Miku clapped her hand over Emi's mouth, making "shush!" gestures with her other hand.

Miku had heard it too. The sound of footsteps. Emi and Gorou probably didn't hear it, but it was there. Dark shadows came into view. Miku relaxed slightly from her usually tense form as she soon saw Team Makoto. Kokoro also relaxed after Miku, since her vision at night isn't as clear as her student's.

Emi frowned, "I didn't sense them." Miku shrugged.

"Hello Kokoro," Makoto stood in front of his friend's team. He had blonde hair and deep green eyes. Makoto and Kokoro were best friends, and are complete opposites. Makoto is calm and polite, while Kokro is boisterous and slightly impulsive. Well, opposites attract.

"Makoto! Don't sneak up on anyone else like that, or they will have your hide." Kokoro scolded him as Makoto's team sat with Kokoro's. The two groups are very familiar with one another already, and they sat contentedly with each other. The two boys on Makoto's team, Kohaku, a boy with medium length orange hair with smiling amber eyes, and Hibiki, a boy with closely cropped black hair, and mischievous dark purple eyes sat next to Gorou, who pretty much ignored them except a greeting grunt. Hoshi, a girl with semi-short, dark purple hair and dark sapphire eyes smiled timidly at everyone and sat in her own little corner of the group. She was always the shy one, but she intimidated everyone for some reason.

Makoto shrugged, "Well, I wouldn't sneak on anyone else besides you. Definitely not Baki's group. His team is about as dangerous as they get. I heard that they are also going to be in the exams."

Everyone nodded in agreement, some shuddered. Everyone but Miku. For the little boy she had thought about not so long ago was in Baki's group, and now with the new information from her Kokoro sensei, her mind starts spinning with thoughts again.

Gaara is Suna's secret weapon, that much was gathered when she eavesdropped on the senseis at night, testing her stealth and hearing ability, and to also enhance her knowledge. If so, then he must have a very big role to play in this plan. Lifting her head to the stars and ignoring the ongoing conversation of the teams, she wondered what role she had.

Certainly not having tea and dango with Konoha shinobi.

In the morning, they set off again, this time with Makoto's team along with them. The atmosphere became louder and brighter. Emi and Miku attempted to make Hoshi socialize a bit more, though Miku's attempts were half-hearted. She was never much of a socializer either anyways, while was Gorou playing "follow the biggest doofus" with Kohaku and Hibiki.

"I already hate this," Gorou muttered under his breath.

"I already hate this," Hibiki imitated Gorou almost exactly but in a much louder and higher pitched voice than Gorou had said it, while Kohaku just snickered and Gorou glared. Hibiki always had an annoying knack for repeating others words, something that usually get him tied upside down from one the pipes that runs through Suna. Now, the others will have to wait and endure it.

This went on for days and nights, as they traveled to the village of leaf. No one mentioned Suna's soon to be attack on Konoha, though Miku couldn't be sure if Makoto's team knew. Or if they even will know.

Sand soon turned into tall grass, which turned into forest. The other members of Kokoro and Makoto's teams were mostly slipping and stumbling from jumping branch to branch except for the senseis themselves. Miku, with her excellent balance as usual, stayed steady longer, though she did trip once or twice, given to the difference in environment.

Another reason for the Genins' clumsiness is that they were mystified by all the green colors of the forest. Sure they saw a huge forest with such greenery before. Mostly on television.

"There it is," Makoto pointed to the large gates in the midst of trees as he jumped down from the tree branch to the ground. The rest of us followed in suit. The teams trailed forward to the gates, except for Miku. She lingered behind with Kokro sensei.

Miku turned to her teacher when the others were out of earshot, "Kokoro sensei, you didn't finish what you have said two nights before, and I believe this is crucial. Why are we here? We are just Genins, and if you plan on an attack, why have us here?"

Kokoro glanced at her and smiled a little, "I know you, Miku. Just follow your instincts, and use your skills, no matter how low they are. The Chuunin exam is a competition to see the skills of different villages' shinobi, a sort of war itself."

"What about ...?" Miku looked at her teacher with hard, icy light blue eyes that she usually had when she was dead serious. Kokoro knew instantly what she was talking about, and shook her head with a smile.

"Don't worry about them, Miku. It'd going to be fine."

_Lie_, Miku thought, _That was another lie_.

Kokoro continued on to follow the rest of the teams. Miku stared after them before smiling a ghost of a grin, her solid eyes still unmoving. "I'm not the strongest one here, Kokoro-sensei. I suppose you know that already."

And she followed her comrades through the gates of Konohagakure.

-.-.-

"I'll go to find some good food places. We'll need it," Miku called over her shoulder. Emi was nowhere to be seen, most likely socializing as usual. Gorou was probably at our hotel room, dead to the world already.

"Nah, it's alright Miku. Just explore this place a bit, will 'ya?" Kokoro winked at her student, "I know you probably have Suna memorized almost to that it is your third conscious. Do the same to this place too! It will become really helpful in the near future."

Miku rolled her eyes but grinned at her teacher. In a flash she was already gone, a bit of dust floating at where she used to stand. Kokro whistled. _Sands, this girl are probably already almost half the speed of light_, she thought. With that Kokro turned away. She had important things to talk to the others about.

Miku flashed close to the wooden fence that lined around the streets, dividing trees from the rest of Konohagakure. Not stopping a nanosecond, she jumped up, her hands curling around a low hanging tree branch. Swinging up, she somersaulted onto the branch, and appeared again on the next one, having leaped to the tree top. _I'm getting the hang of this... _She thought.

No one can see her as she jumped from tree to tree, but some did look up, wondering where the wind that is rustling the leaves is. Leaping from tree to tree, she looked around at Konoha's structure, stopping a few times to admire the wood made houses that seems so alien to her.

Suddenly, she stopped cold on a branch, eyes wide. Because just a few trees away was him.

Note -

Is this okay? Perhaps I should make Miku be a bit weaker, since now, she seems just a bit too strong...

Anyways, review? Pleeeeaaaaaaase~.

Names:

Hibiki - echo, sound. Masculine

Kohaku - amber. Masculine

Makoto - sincerity. Masculine

Hoshi - star. Feminine

- the gold fish killer


	5. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Happy late Halloween! Sorry if this might be sloppy and a bit rushed. I'll change if necessary.

Chapter four

_He_ was hiding in the dark of the tree, with his head bent down and arms crossed, his short, dark crimson hair hanging in his face, hiding his eyes with shadow. But Miku knew what color they were from her small memory. They were cold sea-foam green, edged like diamonds. He could have been a statue for all the movement he was making, but Miku could see the faint breeze ruffling his hair, and his slow inhale and exhale. She hastily shoved her chakra down, hoping he wouldn't notice her.

"GYAAA!" A sudden shout of a chorus of people startled Miku and she pivoted silently on the branch to look towards the paved road. The red-haired boy did not move.

Miku saw a strange assortment of kids who were running from a young, pink haired kunochi, who seemed to be raging furious. A boy with blonde hair with a ridiculous orange jacket and strange whisker like marking on his cheeks (scratches?) and three little kids all with goggles, two boys and one girl, was running for their lives. Miku looked on blankly from her post. _Konoha ninjas …?_

Turning too fast, the little boy at the front with spiky black hair and weird goggles accidentally crashed into a tall kid dressed in all black with purple face paint. He was also wearing some weird cat ear hat… or was that supposed to be some sort of traditional jest hat?

"That hurts..." the guy with face paint said. Miku's eyes narrowed as she focused on his forehead. Sunagakure's head protector. Now that she thought about, she heard of him before. Like, _Watch out for the guy with paint on his face and cat ears._ Those type of gossip she heard often from the streets close to night bars in the evening. He was the Kazekage's second child, Kankuro. He was rumored to be a talented puppeteer.

Kankuro suddenly grabbed the little boy's scarf and lifted him to the air.

"Konohamaru!" The boy with blonde hair and bright orange jacket yelled. He had a leaf head band encircling his blonde head.

"That hurt, shrimp!" Kankuro growled at Konohamaru. The little boy gagged at the pressure on his throat, struggling to breathe. Miku felt her temper rising.

"Don't we get yelled at later?" A fair-haired girl standing next to Kankuro with her spiky hair in four pig tails asked with an absolutely bored expression. She had a huge rectangle strapped to her back (probably a fan) with her head protector around her neck. Also Suna.

_Sands, is all the rest of Suna gonna act like bullies?_ Miku thought exasperatedly. She guessed that the blonde girl is Temari, a girl heard to have a huge fan with her at all times, the first child of Kazekage. This was two of Baki's team. Along with Gaara, who is obviously by a long shot the one gossiped about the most.

Miku glanced at said boy, who didn't seem to notice anything. Either that, or he was faking it. Well, all in all, she was glad he didn't kill her. Yet.

"I'm sorry, I was messing around..." a pink haired girl nervously grimaced with her hands curled under her chin to her chest. Two little kids, a boy and a girl, stood behind her with scared expressions. The pink haired girl was also a leaf ninja, her head protector on the top of her head. She seemed to be a weak girly girl, but Miku would have to see for herself on that part.

"Hey fat ass! Let go of him!" The blonde konoha kid yelled again.

"Let's play a little game before the boss comes," Kankuro fake smiled at the leaf ninjas, while tightening his grip on the little boy's scarf.

"Bastard!" The orange clad leaf nin ran head on to Kankuro. Miku herself was getting angrier by the second at Kankuro's attitude, and in the process had completely forgetting about the red-haired boy ten feet away. She absolutely hated arrogant people, which is why she doesn't get along with Gorou.

Kankuro wiggled his fingers just a bit and the leaf nin crashed to the ground with a surprised yell. To everyone else, the chakra strings are too fast to see. To Miku, she nearly went and scolded the leaf kid for not seeing that coming, though she told herself that not everyone is used to that amount of speed unless you have the Sharingen or if you have moved at 100 miles per hour your whole life. Or, at least, her whole life, which is about five, maybe four years.

"Oh, leaf ninjas...Are weak." Kankuro grinned. The pink haired girl frowned at the Suna duo. _These foreigners… what are they doing here? _

Suddenly, Konoha-maru disappeared, wretched from Kankuro's grip. Everyone gasped in surprise.

"Huh?" Kankuro uttered confusedly just as a girl suddenly appeared a few yards away. She stumbled back a few steps with Konohamaru in her hands. It was Miku. She had miscalculated how far she should step and how heavy Konohamaru weighed. Her arms shook from the 60 pounds of Konohamaru as she cursed her weak strength.

_That serves me right for charging in like a mindless idiot,_ she thought, scolding herself. Going down on one knee, she set Konohamaru down as gently as possible, relieving her arms of the burden.

Konohamaru sat up with his mouth gaping open and his small eyes wide. His two teammates rushed to him with shouts of worry, never getting too close to the new addition to the group.

Miku stood up straight and took a few steps toward the two sand siblings with her back to the leaf ninjas. She crossed her arms and leveled the duo with a cold glare. She looks quite fine now, but inside, she was feeling a sense of fear she rarely had of the two legendary shinobi in Suna. The children of one of the strongest Sand shinobi, Kazekage. She wasn't very positive about her small amount of skill, though that did not make her less annoyed.

"Another brat, huh?" Kakuro growled,"Don't underestimate us. You've seen nothing yet."

"I wasn't underestimating you guys. You shouldn't act so rashly when a little kid just accidentally bumped into you, Kankuro," Miku replied without thinking. _Great_, she thought, _that took away about half of my lifetime_.

"How do you know my name?" Kankuro inquired.

"Simple," Miku pointed to her right ankle where her Suna head protector was tied, "I'm from Suna too. And I hear a lot about you."

"How nice to see I'm so famous. But if you knew me as the Kazekage's son, then you should have known to not mess with me."

"I wouldn't care less if you were Kami's son. Bullying because of such a trivial matter is not acceptable to my book." _And that look away probably another part of my life_, she thought, slightly amused at herself, which is crazy. _Do I suddenly have a urge to die or something? I didn't know I was suicidal... _She mused, momentarily off track of the things going on around her.

"Cheeky brat. I'll show you!" Kankuro growled angrily as his hand reached for the bundle strapped to his back. A stone hit is hand, and he turned his head to look at the intruder.

It was a raven haired boy with a Konoha head protector, sitting casually on a branch. Another stone was tossed up and down in his right hand. He had a high collared dark blue shirt and white shorts. Miku can vaguely see his back and her eyes narrowed. A clan symbol.

"What are you bastards doing in our village?" He said arrogantly. Kankuro glared at the boy, while the pink haired girl shrieked gleefully. She was obviously infatuated with him.

"SASUKE-KUUUN!" Pink hearts were literally floating from her eyes. The little girl beside her was the same, while the boy with glasses and snot looked in awe. The orange clad ninja looked irritated, presumably not happy.

Miku looked Sasuke-"kun" curiously, tipping her head to the side in thought. _The symbol on the back of his shirt..._

_He's pretty handsome_, Temari thought with a slight blush.

"Ah, another guy who pisses me off," Kankuro muttered darkly as he clutched his hand hit by the stone. Seems to have hurt.

"Get lost!" Sasuke said with a slight smirk. Or, ordered, more like it. SO. ARROGANT. _Once in a while arrogance is fine, but at this magnitude, it is suffocating_, she thought irritably. She could relate to Naruto's annoyance at the other boy's arrival.

"Kya! So cool! Get him Sasuke-kun!" The pink haired girl squealed. Her confidence seemed to have boosted up considerably.

"Naruto bro... You suck. I believed in you..." Konohamaru pointed accusingly at the orange-jacket boy, who was apparently named Naruto. Miku stared. _Isn't that an ingredient for ramen?_

"No dummy! I could easily defeat that guy!" Naruto tried to convince Konohamaru while patting him on the back, which the young boy responded by turning his head childishly away with a short "Bah". _Damn you Sasuke! Why are you always making me look bad?!_ Naruto thought angrily.

"Hey punk. Get down here!" Kankuro demanded to the black-haired boy still sitting idly on the tree. He glared at Kankuro and ignored what he said.

"I hate show offs the most," Kankuro said scathingly. Miku looked at him in an almost exasperated way. _Look who's talking._

Kankuro snapped loose the bundle on his back and grabbed it by its black stuff on the top of it that looks like hair.

Temari moved toward her brother in alarm, "Hey, your even going to use Karasu?!"

"Kankuro. Stop it," A chilled voice rang from behind Sasuke. The Uchiha eyes widened in surprise. Miku's fists tightened on reflex when she saw _him_ hanging there.

Gaara stood on the branch with his arms crossed. Upside down, with his feet planted firmly on the underside of the tree branch. _Chakra control must be at least 90% accurate_, Miku thought grimly. _I suppose that is one way he is similar to me. _

His Kanji of the word love was presented to the world as his short bangs fell from his face by the pull gravity. "You're an embarrassment to out villages," Gaara continued, "Losing yourself in a fight. Why do you think we came to the leaf village?"

"Listen Gaara, they started it and..." Kankuro pointed at Miku and the leaf ninjas accusingly — and a bit childishly, Miku had to add — but faltered as Gaara glared at him.

_If looks can kill..._ Miku trailed off in her mind. The ending of that sentence was obvious. Kankuro would convulsing on the ground with blood dripping from his mouth.

"Shut up," Gaara said casually, "I'll kill you." It was then that Miku realized that although this boy was the same one as she had glimpsed ages ago, this was not the same person. The short memory gave hints about Gaara's personality, and he was not like this. _Nothing like this_, Miku realized.

Kankuro flinched at Gaara's cold eyes. He shook with fear as he sweated in nervousness. "Ok, I'm sorry ..."

"I'm also sorry... really sorry..." Temari repeated after her brother, nervously smiling at Gaara. And at that moment, Miku really understood how her earlier thought was completely accurate. Kankuro, and maybe somewhat Temari, had mercilessly bullied the Konoha shinobi, but Gaara was currently also pushing his older siblings around. _All of Suna really are gonna be bullies_, she mused.

"Sorry to you guys," Gaara suddenly was surrounded by swirling sand. A second later, he appeared again in between his brother and sister, sand still dancing around him before scattering into the wind. Miku covered her eyes until she was sure that the sand was gone. Gaara didn't seem to care, or he just wasn't affected by the sand in the wind.

"It looks like we got here early, but... we didn't come here to play around," Gaara said.

"I know that..." Kankuro said nervously, but Gaara didn't seem to have heard him.

"Let's go," he commanded.

He had already turned around when the pink haired girl suddenly shouted out, "Hey, wait!"

Turning around again he glared at her, "What?"

"Judging from your head protectors, you guys are ...ninja from the Sand, right?" She questioned. "You may be allies with Leaf village but... it is forbidden for shinobis to enter each other's villages without permission. State your purpose. Depending on it, we may not be able to let you go..."

Miku stared at the other girl blankly. _What's with this sudden toughness?_ She glanced at Sasuke. _Is it because of him? _

Temari opened her mouth to answer, but Miku beat her to it, earning herself a glare from the sand haired girl, "We're all here to test for the Chuunin selection exams. You'll probably see people from other villages here too for the next few weeks."

Naruto looked at Miku blankly, "... Chuunin exams...?"

Mku let Temari answer this one, "Geez, you really don't know anything..." Okay, now Miku regrets letting the older girl talk. "The Chuunin Exams is... where outstanding genins from Sand, Leaf, and other neighboring villages assemble to become a Chuunin."

"Why do we take it together?" Naruto interrupted her speech.

"The main purpose is said to be to inprove the relationships between the allies and to raise the shinobi level, but also, each country likes to maintain a power balance and —"

"Hey, Konohamaru! Think I should enter this Chuunin Exam thing?" Naruto turned to the younger boy in excitement, cutting Temari off from her lesson.

"You bastard! You asked a question, listen `til the end!" Irritated, the Suna kunochi shook her fist at the blonde boy while scolding him.

Suddenly, Sasuke jumped down from the branch in front of the Sand siblings, "Hey you, what's your name?"

Temari snapped from her anger and looked at the black haired boy, blushing and smiling, "Huh? You mean me?"

"No. You with the gourd."

Miku looked at Temari with a bit of pity. Of course, people like Sasuke would take more interest in a battling opponent than a girl.

Gaara narrowed his eyes at the Uchiha and replied in that same eerie voice, "Gaara of the Desert." He then turned fully to Sasuke. "I'm also interested in you. Your name?"

"It's Uchiha Sasuke," the boy smirked slightly again. A short silence ensued as the wind blew through the group. Then, much to Miku's surprise, Gaara looked at her directly for the first time. She tensed, not sure what to make of the boy's cold eyes.

"You. Tell me your name,"Gaara's words directed to Miku made eyes widen in surprise. She raised an eyebrow and considered the order. She hated being demanded of something, but this is Gaara. The one who kills with ease, as the rumors says.

"Not one of importance," the reply slipped out of her mouth before she could think it over, and she winced slightly at what she said. Gaara narrowed his eyes into a glare at her but turned away, to Miku's relief.

"Hey! What about me, huh?!" Naruto pointed to himself with a big grin.

Without missing a beat, Gaara gave a sort and icy reply, "Not interested." Gaara then ordered his older sister and brother, "Let's go." They went away in an instance.

_Poor Naruto_, Miku thought as the blonde boy slumped in depression.

_Heh, this is getting interesting_, Sasuke thought with smirk.

"Sasuke!" I won't lose to you!" Naruto shouted for the world to hear. Miku winced slightly at his loudness.

The pink haired girl smacked him in the head, "What's your problem?!"

Miku looked at the other kunochi in curiosity, "What's your name? I didn't hear it when all that commotion was going on."

The girl put's her hands her hips while huffing in an annoyed manner at her teammate's stupity, "It's Haruno Saukra."

Miku nodded, "The name suits you."

Sakura glared at her in suspicion, "Thank you. What is your name, if you will tell me?"

"Nomaru Miku," Miku said, a bit awkwardly. Her real last name, she could not remember. "Nomaru", meaning "normal", was suggested jokingly by Kokoro. Miku was definitely was not any of the sort, but she took the name anyways.

Sakura tilted her head and opened her mouth to ask something when she saw that Sasuke was walking away from the group. "Sasuke-kun, wait up!" She said almost cheerfully and skipped after the boy. Miku watched them disappear around the corner, a bit irritated. _What a great way to end a friendly conversation, walking away without notice_, she thought sarcastically. She was getting good at showing irritation these days.

Naruto stood there looking a bit dejected. Miku, feeling sympathy for the blonde boy again, went up to him and said, "How about I treat you to a meal? It is almost time to eat anyway. In return, tell me where there is a good place to eat."

Naruto looked at her with wide blue eyes, and Miku suddenly realized how short he was, almost two inches smaller than her self. He yelled in an excited voice, "RAMEN!"

Miku did not know how much her life will change from then on.

Note -

This chapter was really hard to write. Miku, meeting with the lead characters of Naruto? Gosh, my mind is killing me...

By the way, a few days ago, there was a Halloween party at my school. Someone came dressed up as Gaara! And the person who dressed up like him won the costume party, since a lot of fan girls were there! Trust me, I was one of them. I took a picture, and was _this close_ to asking for an autograph. On the inside I was screaming hysterically, and I spread the news about this to everyone in the party and demanded them to vote for Gaara. Though, the second part was not needed:

**"OH MY GOD!" - me.**

**"What is it?! Calm down woman and speak." - anonymous.**

**"GAARA'S HERE!" - me**

**"Really?! Where?! SHOW ME! I NEED AN AUTOGRAPH! GIVE ME A PIECE OF PAPER AND PEN OR ELSE I'LL POKE OUT YOUR EYEBALLS!" - anonymous.**

Yes, there certainly were a lot of Gaara fangirls there at the party.

Extremely random fact: every time I try to spell "Leaf" in the story, it comes out as "Leak".

- the gold fish killer


End file.
